I love Caravaggio. He was hounded by the all kinds of shadowy enemies..and some say, the church.. he was always on the run from one threat or another. His paintings showed the violence and torment of his inner world. It is almost borderline erotic because he slapped on homoeroticism over religious iconography. I cant really articulate why i feel that way...even though I am neither gay nor male.
Having said that, noone does shadows as well as Caravaggio. Everything about his use of light and shadows is stark and raw...really sad and violent at the same time. I consider myself lucky to have seen his paintings first hand when it came up for a exhibit in London. I loved Caravaggio even more after that.
Most older paintings are filled with hidden symbols[1], that was kind of the point.
Today we still find this tradition of set dressing occurring in diplomatic photos.
[1] I have not read The Benedict Option but from its reviews, and from Dreher's professional and confessional background, I currently suspect Madonna's Justify My Love has stronger theological grounding.
Edit: for the downvoter, are you aware of the various christian doctrines of justification, and their roles in the schisms within that religion?
For Dreher's confessional cursus, see https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24588118
(Not being a believer in heresy myself, I am feeling more charitable towards the shakiness of his theology after having discovered he is a journalist and/or blogger, not a theologian.)
Having said that, noone does shadows as well as Caravaggio. Everything about his use of light and shadows is stark and raw...really sad and violent at the same time. I consider myself lucky to have seen his paintings first hand when it came up for a exhibit in London. I loved Caravaggio even more after that.